Vampiric murders, grand house intrigue, and the interest of mercurial gods all upend an uneasy peace in this brisk, spicy, and surprising sixth book in Hill’s Shadows of Otherside urban fantasy series, which picks up after the climatic jolts of Eternal Huntress. That entry found sylph and one-time private investigator Arden Finch in the position of High Queen of House Solari and Arbiter for the Carolinas demesne, an elevation not universally celebrated among the fantastical denizens of the Otherside. Now, Arden’s eager to reform the most brutal practices of the Elven Houses, but she has been laying low for a year ever since her ascension and the Durham-devastating events of the previous book. She’s currently dreading her own birthday party and undergoing rigorous training to become an agent of the Darkwatch, but she’s still very much a detective at heart—which will come in handy once blood-drained bodies, likely the victims of vampires, are discovered around the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill triangle, including in the governor’s mansion. With the mundane world agitated in ways that cleverly echoes real-world North Carolina tensions, Arden must navigate tricky politics, both mundane—now that the world knows about werewolves, elves, sylvans, and the rest, conservative politicians are on the warpath—and magical, including protecting the secret of her romance with Troy, an elven king who gives her love bites with his “shark-like secondary teeth.” Arden remains a nimble, engaging hero, outfoxing those who underestimate her, and always having to “drag everyone kicking and screaming into the future.” She narrates her adventures in intimate, witty, sensual prose that pulls readers pleasurably along.
Quick-witted and spiced with romance and unpredictable magic and action, Tempered Illusions exemplifies its genre, as Arden faces a twisty investigation, host of varied and complex diplomatic situations, amusing friends, and enemies capable of anything. It’s a legitimate thrill when Arden pulls deeply on her elemental powers or allows herself to relish the “jolt of the magic of blood and sex.”
Takeaway: Stellar urban fantasy spiced with romance, conspiracies, and Carolina politics.
Comparable Titles: Faith Hunter, Kim Harrison.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
